If something characterizes to the voluntary military service it is that it does not concern the age, the sort, the formation, the labor experience, the economic situation nor the beliefs of each, to comprise of any initiative of any nature. To be voluntary does not entail requirements of forced fulfillment, on the contrary, the social participation through voluntary military service contributes to the physical and mental well-being of the people who choose this option to continue being useful the society.

It is more, the incorporation as voluntary of the people majors supposes important advantages for all the sectors, society, organizations, and also for them. Proof of it, is that every time they are plus the majors that realize voluntary military service activities in our country. A percentage, in addition, that continuous in ascent, as they demonstrate the numbers to it of the Community of Madrid, where of the 150,000 registered volunteers, one of each four surpasses the 65 years.

And it is that the voluntary military service offers a very ample space of participation, finding options for all the preferences, or are in the cultural, educative, professional scope, of support to other majors or to environmental people with incapacity, immigrants, tasks, etc. Without a doubt, a very good way to occupy the time and to know people but, mainly, to help the others and to give back to the society which before has been received.

“The voluntary military service represents one more an option than recommendable. Who are open and eager to confront new challenges they can, through this type of altruistic, to put its time and illusion, next to its knowledge and experience, at the disposal of the society and to continue being, and feeling, productive and useful activities. Also those with one more a more negative perception of the future can find here an escape route to the inactivity and the apathy that can produce the lack of obligations�, explains the female leader of the Service of Voluntary military service of the Community of Madrid, Alonso Snows.
Benefits for the society

Benefits for the society
The valuable contribution that supposes for the society the baggage and the years of experience of the people majors does not have price, as it says a famous announcement of the television. In this sense, the voluntary military service contributes to bring back to consciousness to the population of the importance of this group, being obtained an improvement of its paper and social, and spreading, at the same time, the values of solidarity and voluntary military service, so fashionable image in these times.

Benefits for the NGO
The incorporation of people majors like volunteers, with a degree of commitment, dedication and hour availability generally superior to the one of other groups, favorably contributes to reduce the rotation of the volunteers and to the maintenance of a stable voluntary base. Also, when they agree voluntary of different ages, they are possible to be benefitted from the interchange of ideas, perceptions and knowledge that offer the intergenerational relations. In addition, when increasing the number of people with great experience, more and better programs of intervention can be realized.

Benefits for the voluntary majors
“Probably, the majors benefits of we found them the voluntary military service in the own people realize who it. It can sound to something utopian the famous phrase “with the voluntary military service is received much more than one occurs�, but for somebody it is certain, without a doubt, it is for the group of people majors. The option to initiate a new vital project helping others foments the personal autorrealización and develops a property feeling that favors the intergenerational interchange�, assures Alonso Snows.

On the other hand, the World-wide Organization of the Health (the WHO) considers the participation like one of the fundamental axes of the active aging, talking about to the “process of optimization of the opportunities of health, participation and security with the purpose of to improve the quality of life as the people age�. Also, she indicates also that to prevent the dependancy, is due to bet by styles of life with regular physical activity and adapted, sensible diet, intellectual life and socially she activates, regulated dream, evaluation of the disease and participation major in the socioeconomic weave.

Really, these are some of the many advantages:
• It favors the physical and mental health and the well-being.
• It foments the self-esteem and the social recognition.
• It promotes a life socially it activates and it abre new relations.
• It allows to initiate a new vital project and to continue having illusion.
• Aid to prevent situations with dependancy.

SOME EXAMPLES

• Main directorate of Voluntary military service and Social Promotion of the Community of Madrid. It has like high-priority attachment line the promotion of the voluntary military service of the people majors. The interested ones in receiving information or participating in formative courses, you can call to gratuitous telephone 900 44 45 55.

• Democratic union of Retired Pensioners and of Spain (UDP). Its program of social voluntary military service of majors is developed, at the moment, in six independent communities, with more than 2,700 volunteers than they serve of support and aid to other majors.

• Spanish confederation of Organizations of Mayores (CEOMA). Account with different programs from voluntary military service: support of patients, single majors, classes of digital alphabetization, etc.

• Spanish confederation of Classrooms of Tercera Edad (CEATE). From 1993 it develops a program of volunteers cultural to teach to the museums and cathedrals from Spain to children, young people and retired.

• Seniors Spanish for Cooperación Técnica (SECOT). It offers the possibility to all those preretired pensioners and wishes that it to follow realizing a voluntary military service of enterprise advising enterprising young people, SMEs and NGO in active-duty.

• The Spanish Red Cross. More than 2,000 people majors they collaborate of way continued with the organization, which supposes around the 12 percent of all their voluntary military service.

• Nagusilan. Association of volunteers majors oriented to help, to accompany and to animate to other majors.

• Friendly of the Majors. The objective is to palliate the solitude, the isolation and the affective deficiencies of the people majors that live single, through different activities (support, excursions, teas).

• Development and Attendance. Voluntary military service in residences of people majors, support in address, hospitals, etc.